Luang Prabang village

Where the Nam Khan and Mekong meet in Luang Prabang there is a bamboo bridge that leads over to some villages. Here we were able to see the complete production cycle from silk moth to finished woven articles.

Bridge across the Nam Khan.

The bridge from the other side

In the village over the river we found a complete silk operation. The owner has a thriving business employing 24 people in the gardens and in the silk factory. He grows is own mulberry plants to feed the worms and also the plants which are used for the natural dyes that are used.

What we really appreciated was the fact the owner was very happy to show us his operation but that there was no pressure to buy anything in his shop.

Silk moths and eggs

After the eggs hatch, the worms are feed on mulberry leaves for 23-25 days.

Several baskets containing worms at various stages were stacked on shelves and covered.

After feeding exclusively on mulberry leaves, the worms start their metamorphosis by spinning their cocoons. The larvae remain in their cocoons for 7 days before the moths emerge to mate and lay eggs before they die after 2-3 days. 

Cocoons ready for the recovery of the silk.

Each cocoon yields 100-150 m of silk. Many threads are wound together before the silk is then dyed using natural products. We did not see this part of the operation.

Some of the natural dyes grown by the owner on his farm.

Dyeing the silk

Spinning the silk onto small bobbins

Weaving is still done manually

Before we came across the silk factory we meet the lady below who ran her own shop and very obligingly showed us how she used her loom. The loom is made from wood, bamboo and string.

Several silk scarves were purchased but judging by the amount of time taken to weave one, the hourly return would be quite low. She was very happy with our purchases though.

We were pleased to get back to our hotel, via the other bamboo bridge, as it was well over 30C.

To go to the start of our adventures in Vientiane click on the link.

This complete my blogs of our Laos trip.

Today I have been out enjoying the Nanjing blossom.